MTA New York City Transit Announces Changes to Schedule of Planned 7 Flushing Line Weekend Service Shutdowns

Shutdown Scheduled for the Weekend of May 17-18, 2014 has been CANCELLED

MTA New York City Transit has worked in the past few weeks to rearrange the necessary work undertaken on the Line in order to accommodate requests from community members regarding the impact that some weekend service shutdowns would have on community events along the Flushing Line. Most notably, the planned Line service shutdown scheduled for the weekend of May 17-18, 2014 has been cancelled and NYC Transit will run normal Line service.

A summary of changes for 2014 is outlined below:

• (May 3-4) is no longer a 74 St-Broadway to Times Square shutdown. It will now be a shutdown between Queensboro Plaza and Times Sq-42 St.

• (May 17-18) is no longer a 74 St-Broadway to Times Square shutdown. Normal service will operate this weekend between Flushing-Main St and Times Sq-42 St.

• (May 31-June 1) will now be a 74 St-Broadway to Times Sq-42 St shutdown.

• (Sept. 20-21) will now be a 74 St-Broadway to Times Sq-42 St shutdown instead of a Main St-bound reroute to the middle track between Queensboro Plaza to 74 St-Broadway.

• (Nov 15-16) will now be a limited service to Queensboro Plaza with no service between Queensboro Plaza and Times Sq-42 St weekend. Previously, this was a Times Sq-42 St to Queensboro Plaza shutdown combined with a Main St-bound reroute to the middle track between Queensboro Plaza and 74 St-Broadway.

The work we are doing on the Line remains absolutely critical to this service’s reliability, safety and longevity. Therefore, the work that we had previously scheduled for the weekend of May 17-18, 2014 will have to be rescheduled. However, this change will not increase the number of Steinway Tube closures for 2014. Some Main St-bound reroutes to the middle track (between Queensboro Plaza and 74 St-Broadway) will be rescheduled to 2015.

The multi-year, $550 million capital improvement project to replace the antiquated 50- to 90-year-old signaling system on the line with state-of-the-art CBTC technology will continue into 2017. Upon completion, CBTC technology will interface with subway cars and countdown clocks to increase operational flexibility and reliability, and allow NYC Transit to run more trains per hour. These improvements will reduce crowding, prevent signal problems associated with old equipment, and further accommodate the population growth in Queens.

NYC Transit will also continue its work bringing the 120-year old Steinway Tube back to a state of good repair. Work in 2014 will include $33 million in component replacement and upgrade, which will include demolishing and reconstructing collapsed duct which houses critical electrical and communication lines to house new cables that supply power for the new technology we're installing. NYC Transit will be rehabilitating the tube’s pump room and discharge lines, which were damaged during Sandy.

NYC Transit is also addressing critical track conditions that require the removal and replacement of elevated track panels that have neared or exceeded their useful lifespan and pose risks not just to safety but also to the Line's operational capacity. If old track panels are not replaced, they become subject to mandatory speed reductions to prevent derailments, which result in fewer trains operating per hour and more crowding. In all, NYC Transit expects to renew and replace approximately 2,980 feet of old track representing a $15 million investment.